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Irish Hospice Foundation
Toolkit for Compassionate End-of-Life Care
Supporting family and friends when a person is dying Good end-of-life care also includes the support we give to the community surrounding a person - including family, friends and carers - before, at the time of and after death. While we always need to keep the person at the centre of our care, we should also aim to provide community-inclusive end-of-life care. We need to recognise those who usually provide the primary support for the dying person and acknowledge the importance of those relationships.
While all relationships are different, they each need care, kindness, compassion and time. When providing support for friends, family and carers, we need to be aware of diverse family situations and the individual dynamics of each particular family, as well as other important relationships to a dying person. We need to consider how emotional/ psychosocial relationships, cultural and spiritual issues and how practical, environmental and financial concerns might impact the person dying and their family.
“When we feel like we have nothing more to give, we need to look inside ourselves and give what we have there – our time, our kindness, our love. Allow our humanity to be the connection we share with others.” Healthcare Worker
Supporting children Parents and guardians who care for their children every day are usually the best people to communicate information to a child when a person is dying. Conversations to help children understand what is happening should take place as early as possible in the illness to allow the information to sink in. en the child can ask questions later on, when they have had time to think. Talking to children about illness or death should be an on-going process (the timing will depend on whether it is a sudden or long-term illness). Children find it hard to take in too much information at once, so it should be broken down for them into small pieces with a little added to the story each time.
Visit www.childrensbereavement.ie for more information.
Communication Good communication is important when supporting grieving people. All communication between staff and others should be governed by the known will and preference of the person and, where these are not known, by the best interests of the person. Friends and family can play an important role in helping to communicate with the person. Clear communication processes should be in place and adopted by all staff. ese processes should involve the person and their Designated Healthcare Representatives, if any, to provide clarity around role and responsibility for decision making. It is useful to establish these processes as early as possible. Remember, nobody can make a decision for a person unless they have been legally appointed to do so by the person in an Advance Healthcare Directive . Medical decisions should be made by the person for as long as possible, and then by any appointed person on their behalf. Barring the appointment of this person, medical decisions are made by a senior clinician.
Care of the Dying Person 4
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